Dead Hot Mama

by Victoria Houston

Published 2 March 2004
As ice-fishing season arrives in Loon Lake, Police Chief Lew Ferris finds himself dealing with the bodies of two snowmobilers pulled out of Two Sisters Lake and a beautiful woman's corpse found in a snowdrift.

Dead Hot Shot

by Victoria Houston

Published 1 May 2008
Murder never takes a holiday...or so Loon Lake learns one wintry Thanksgiving Day.

Chief of Police Lew Ferris, short-handed thanks to an AWOL coroner, never even gets the turkey stuffed before the bodies start to surface. By the end of the day, credit card theft and dysfunctional families have so muddied the waters that not even expert tracker and dedicated fishing guide Ray Pradt can hope to fish the final day of muskie season. And while retired dentist Doc Osborne had counted on sitting by the fire with Lew (out of uniform) and planning a fly-fishing trip to Wyoming, the unexpected arrival of Gina Palmer, former investigative reporter turned forensics database expert, ramps up the action with her pursuit of a Canadian link to the theft of merchandise from stores across the upper Midwest. Dead Hot Shot, ninth in the Loon Lake Mystery series, is a heady mix of murder, mayhem, and fishing in the northwoods of Wisconsin.

Dead Boogie

by Victoria Houston

Published 7 March 2006
Doc Osborne knows there are plenty of fish in the sea, but only police chief Lew Ferris qualifies as his catch of the day.

Just as the summer is heating up, the town gets turned upside down by the bizarre triple homicide discovered on a backcountry road... Peg Garmin was not Loon Lake's most beloved citizen. Considering her "calling" in life, no one was completely surprised when she was found murdered in the company of two exotic dancers...no one, that is, except for Ray Pradt, Peg's dearest friend.

As the team digs into the mystery of her past, they discover some startling connections to one of the wealthiest families in Chicago and to the buried secret that could destroy them. Now Lew, Osborne, and Ray must root the skeletons out of the Garmin family closet before Peg's killer becomes the one who got away...

Dead Frenzy

by Victoria Houston

Published 4 February 2003
Between a fishing tournament and a biker convention, Doc Osborne and Police Chief Ferris are spending less time catching bass and more time catching crooks...

For fishing pals (or are they more than just pals?) Doc Osborne and Police Chief Lew Ferris, Loon Lake, Wisconsin, is usually a great place to seek out some mutual solitude in the trout stream. But lately, the town has been teeming with competitive bass fisherman and bikers, too many less-than-savory characters. Meanwhile, there's an old murder case Doc's bent on solving even as he himself is stalked by a mysterious visitor.

Dead Creek

by Victoria Houston

Published 7 November 2000
When Doc Osborne up in the middle of a murder mystery, only Chief of Police Lew Ferris can get him out of it.

Fishing aside, there's nothing Doc likes better than helping Chief of Police Lew Ferris, a world-class fly fisherman in her own right, delve into Loon Lake's criminal underworld. He's looking for any excuse to spend time with the only woman he knows who likes to fish as much as he does. So bloodthirsty killers and backwoods bandits be damned, Doc will take the quiet risk.

Dead Lil' Hustler

by Victoria Houston

Published 15 May 2014
It's mid-July in Loon Lake, and Police Chief Lewellyn Ferris has her hands full with the discovery of the skeletal remains of a missing bank executive and the murder of graduate student. To complicate matters, both victims were discovered on a hidden river deep in the national forest--a place that just so happens to be a dangerous wolf rendezvous site. Lew recruits her close friend and fellow flyfisherman, retired dentist "Doc" Osborne for his forensic and interrogation skills. But Doc has his own set of problems to worry about: his grandson is hospitalized with a grave illness, and now Lew seems to be getting too interested in the father of the murdered student--a well-to-do widower who is teaching her the Japanese art of tenkara flyfishing.

Dead Jitterbug

by Victoria Houston

Published 1 April 2005
With the murder of a well-known advice columnist, Police Chief Lewellyn Ferris has her hands full with all the potential suspects.

Everyone knows the name Hope McDonald--and not just the couple thousand folks in Loon Lake. Her advice column is syndicated worldwide to about eighty million readers. When the wise old woman is found murdered in her home, Chief Lew Ferris can think of more than a few suspects--and calls on Doc Osborne for help. Since Hope was dealing with some desperate souls, Doc and Lew will have to think of the perfect bait to net a cold-blooded killer...

Dead Insider

by Victoria Houston

Published 1 May 2013
In the midst of a catastrophic August rainstorm, a grisly discovery shatters the serenity of a summer evening in northern Wisconsin. Moving quickly to prevent a panic among tourists, Loon Lake Police Chief Lewellyn Ferris enlists the forensic and interrogation skills of her close friend and fellow fly fisherman, the retired dentist "Doc" Osborne. Within hours of launching their investigation, they find themselves faced with a national media circus as Loon Lake becomes the focus of a murderous scenario that links the murder to the race for the U.S. Senate by a woman who is heir to a Northwoods fortune and other, less savory, family traditions.